Zoro is not looking bad at all. What we are seeing is Oda typical writing style when he has Zoro face an opponent not strong enough to give him a real challenge. He makes Zoro waste time fighting until plot is ready for him to move on. We saw similar writing styles when he faced Monet, Hyouzou and Pica. Sure, Lucci is much stronger than those characters but to Zoro he's still an opponent nowhere close to his level.
Lucci mocking Zoro is his way of trying to save some face since he realized he can't beat Zoro.
Lucci went from claiming he will kill all the Straw Hats since backup arrived.
To believing he can only kill Zoro, that he considered a worthy achievement.
To realizing he can beat Zoro but as long as he can stall Zoro maybe he can convince Zoro he's a burden to his crew.
2 swords Zoro handling and controlling a battle against a YC1 character who's using their strongest form and awakening it's a great look for Zoro. It makes it clear Zoro is beyond YC1 level and top tier. Even Yamato could stall Kaido.